The Forest's Secret
by AxelK4
Summary: On a clear night, a kit was born on the verge of death, though no cats of the stars knew. He was taken to the medicine cat and was saved, but at what price?
1. Prologue

**A/N: Hey guys! For those of you who don't know, this is a story I started writing back in… November I believe. Back then it was call "One of the Forest". Unfortunately, it wasn't going the way I wanted it to and to be quite honest, the writing was pretty awful, I didn't proofread, edit it, etc. SO! I'm starting it again and hopefully all goes well and you guys like it!**

**Prologue**

The half-moon shone weakly in the cloudless night sky, bathing the tall grass in silver light. A gentle breeze wove through each blade, causing them to sway back and forth like the tree branches in the neighboring forest. The night was completely silent except for the rustling of the grass, the occasional hoot of an owl, and a lone wail emanating from a ravine in the middle of the plain. The sound had come from a distressed SummerClan queen.

A dainty gray and black she-cat crouched over a small figure, a newborn kit, lying in the soft moss of the den. Not a breath came from his body, and his heartbeat was slowing. The queen wailed once more and nuzzled the kit, as if to bring him back to life. Her other two kits mewled pitifully, awaiting milk from their devastated mother, but the queen would not pay them any attention.

A tortoiseshell tom sat a few tail-lengths away from the queen, looking as if he were waiting for something. As moments passed, the fur on his neck fluffed up more and more and he flattened his ears, like he was scared.

The queen glanced mournfully at the tom. "Fallenmeadow…" she whispered, noticing the sour stench of fear wafting from him. "What's wrong? You've seen many cats… die before." She hesitated using the word 'die' in front of her kits, as if saying it would harm the remaining two so they would end up like their brother.

Fallenmeadow sighed, shaking his patched head. "I can't sense any SoulClan cats in our presence, waiting to guide your kit to the stars. Something is wrong. It's like… it's like they don't see what's happening…"

The queen gasped and flattened her ears. "But SoulClan sees everything! They can't possibly miss this!" she whimpered. "He has to at least go to SoulClan… if he can't stay here."

"Hush Wolfshade," Fallenmeadow mewed. "I will try my hardest to save him, if SoulClan won't help him to their realm; I'm going to try my best to keep him here." He walked over to the small kit and awaited Wolfshade's approval to take him to his own den.

"W-why do you want to take him to your den?!" Wolfshade stuttered, understanding Fallenmeadow's unasked question. "Shouldn't he stay with his mother? So he can get the milk he needs?" Her tail lashed angrily back and forth as she glared at Fallenmeadow.

Fallenmeadow looked at Wolfshade and unsheathed his claws defensively. "There are some things medicine cats should do without prying eyes. In the meantime, you should look after your other two kits,they need protection just as much as this one does," he growled. And with that, he gently picked up the sickly black kit and quietly walked out of the Nursery, as not to wake the other residents.

Wolfshade hissed softly but said nothing more, glancing at her remaining son and daughter. She nudged them closer with her paws and they began to suckle. Wolfshade sighed and rested her head on her paws, dozing off to the soft purring of the two kits lying at her stomach.

Before completely dozing off, the breeze started to pick up and Wolfshade shivered, curling her tail around her kits to protect them from the cold. The queen winced as an owl screeched in the distance and the Nursery was plunged into darkness as the moon was blotted out by the clouds which had almost spontaneously appeared.

Wolfshade frowned; a storm now wouldn't have made sense, since the night had been perfectly clear when she finished kitting, which wasn't too long ago. She tasted the air, making sure rain was or wasn't truly on the way. No scent drifted in the air, not even the scent of the grass that stretched across the land. Wolfshade wrinkled her nose at the peculiar phenomenon. _What's happening?_ She thought, trying to catch a glimpse of what was going on outside. Unfortunately, she couldn't see from where she was lying, but she could hear wind battering the Nursery.

Making sure her kits were asleep, Wolfshade headed outside. She gasped as she almost got knocked down by the raging wind that was whistling through the ravine. She dug her claws into the ground, barely staying upright, and looked around worriedly. Bits of grass and small stones were swirling in the air and the outline of the moon shone behind the clouds.

Wolfshade squeaked as a pebble flew towards her head. She ducked, narrowly avoiding it. She began to back into the Nursery for her safety. She noticed that no one had awoken, how was no one noticing this? The cats on guard didn't even come running.

Then, as soon as it had started, the wind abruptly went back to the gentle breeze it had started as and the grass and rocks fell to the ground. The clouds began to disperse and the moon shone once again, turning the rocky ground silver. Wolfshade let out the breath she hadn't realized she was holding and remained silent.

_What just happened?_

In the silence, Wolfshade heard her kits mewling in the Nursery, calling for her. She quickly rushed back to them and let them suckle once more. She began to ponder what had just happened and soon nodded off without realizing it.

Wolfshade awoke to a paw poking her side. She hadn't realized that she had fallen asleep, but not for long since it was still dark. She growled and lifted her head, finding Fallenmeadow's silhouette standing over her, her black kit hanging from his mouth. The kit's breathing had greatly improved and he was squirming around in the medicine cat's grip.

"He will live," he said blatantly, setting the kit down next to his brother and sister. With a curt nod, he turned to leave.

"Thank you," Wolfshade breathed, her amber eyes resting on the kit, which had found his way to his mother's stomach and began to nurse. "Thank you so much, how can I ever repay you?"

"You're welcome," Fallenmeadow mewed over his shoulder. "And you don't need to do anything; it's all in a day's work." He headed for the exit, his face somewhat grim.

"Wait!" Wolfshade chirped, almost jumping to her paws before realizing she had three kits with her.

Fallenmeadow turned around. "What do you need? I'm kind of busy," he grumbled, suddenly sounding rather flustered.

Wolfshade blinked. "I… I wanted to know what happened back there. With the wind and the clouds… Would you be able to tell me?" she asked.

Fallenmeadow chuckled. "Medicine cat stuff," he responded, and then with a sweep of his tail, he left to his own den.

Wolfshade snorted. _Not much of an answer, _she though, glaring out the den to where Fallenmeadow had disappeared into the medicine den. She glanced at her three kits, a smile spreading across her face. _But I won't bother him, since he's already done so much for me… I'll wait for Snowdrift in the morning so we can name them._ She blinked drowsily and fell asleep along with her kits.

**A/N: So there we go! I tried my hardest to make this as long as I could without rambling, and I think I did a pretty good job! I'd love it if you guys would let me know what you think, so leave a review if you decided to give this story a try! The allegiances for this clan will be in the next chapter… Maybe I'll put in the other three clans in another chapter in the near future.**

**Here's a question for you all to think about: What happened? **

**If this is your first time reading this story, go ahead and answer in the reviews, if you already read what there was of the older version of this story, could you send the answer to me by PM?**

**The next chapter should **_**hopefully **_**be up within the next week or so, as long as I don't forget to update like I did before **


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N: New chapter! The allegiances will be at the start of the chapter (as you can see below the author's note), and then the story! Hope you like it!**

**Reviews:**

** . .Doctor: Thank you so much! I'm glad you like the names :D**

_**SummerClan**_

**Leader**

Whisperstar – Brown she-cat with blue eyes

**Deputy**

Dragonsong – Huge black and orange tom

**Medicine Cat**

Fallenmeadow – Long-furred tortoiseshell tom

**Warriors**

Honeybreeze – Cream she-cat with lighter dapples and amber eyes (Apprentice: Lilypaw)

Shadowflight – Lithe black tom with dark grey paws

Runningstream – White she-cat with blue-grey patches

Viperstrike – Reddish-brown tom with long front teeth

Riverstone – Grey she-cat with green eyes

Icefeather – Small, pure white she-cat with brown flecks

Shellpool – Grey and brown tom (Apprentice: Sparrowpaw)

Windleap – Small, lithe, pure black tom

Sandyleaf – Pale ginger tabby she-cat

Flowerblossom – Pretty white she-cat (Apprentice: Mallowpaw)

Snowdrift – Brown tom with a big white patch on his back and blue eyes

**Apprentices**

Sparrowpaw – Brown tom with darker spots

Lilypaw – Pale grey she-cat

Mallowpaw – Blue-grey tom

**Queens**

Ambergaze – Pale grey she-cat with white ears and bright amber eyes (Mother of Windleap's kits, Thunderkit and Lightningkit)

Wolfshade – Grey and black she-cat with a white tail-tip (Mother of Snowdrift's kits, Darkkit, Clawkit and Stormkit)

**Kits**

Thunderkit – Black tom with a white tail (Ambergaze)

Lightningkit – White she-cat with a black tail (Ambergaze)

Darkkit – Small black tom with blue eyes (Wolfshade)

Clawkit – Black and brown she-cat with large paws (Wolfshade)

Stormkit – Large grey tom (Wolfshade)

**Elders**

Skybird – Cream she-cat with grey patches

Foxface – White tom with an orange face and white muzzle

Darkkit sat alone, taking in the scents of the Nursery as he'd done so many times before. The kit hadn't opened his eyes yet and he wanted to know all there was about the Nursery before he did. His brother, Stormkit, and sister, Clawkit, had pestered him about opening his eyes ever since they did a few days prior.

Darkkit felt the warmth of the sun on his pelt and the spongy moss beneath his paws. He drank in the warm, milky scent of the den and he heard the purring of the two newest kits, Thunderkit and Lightningkit. Nothing was wrong as far as he could tell, all was the same.

"Darkkit!" he heard his sister squeak, interrupting his quiet time. Clawkit was probably going to pester him about opening his eyes again, and soon, since Darkkit could hear her crashing around the Nursery looking for him.

"What?" he grumbled, standing up and swiveling his ears around to find where his sister was.

"Mom sent me to play with you!" Clawkit yowled. Darkkit heard her pawsteps coming closer and closer and getting faster as she neared him.

He braced himself for Clawkit's weight to come barreling into him, but even when she hit him, he was knocked to the ground and the breath was squeezed out of him, since he was rather puny compared to his sister as far as he could tell. "Claw…kit," Darkkit wheezed, trying to push her off. "I… don't think that this… this is how to play…"

"Of course it is, silly!" she giggled, and Darkkit felt her weight leave. He stood up once more, gasping for breath. "Have you ever seen Stormkit and I play? I attack you, and you're supposed to fight back!"

Darkkit scrunched up his face. "Uh, of course I haven't seen you guys play. My eyes haven't opened, remember?" he reminded her, which he immediately regretted as he probably just walked into another lecture about opening them.

Clawkit laughed. "Well… you should open your eyes then!" she teased, just as he had expected, and Darkkit heard her voice growing fainter as she walked back to their mother and brother.

Darkkit sighed. _Fine, I'll open my eyes if it means you and Stormkit won't bother me anymore,_ he thought. He started to open them, wincing as his eyes met the light of the sun. _I thought it would be a bit less painful. _He looked around, squinting his eyes.

The Nursery was a mess of gorse and dried grass, just big enough for a few adult cats and some kits, the floor was completely covered in feathers and moss while flowers lined the walls, adding color to the otherwise colorless den. Not too far away, he saw two kits, one black and one white, curled up against the belly of a pale grey she-cat.

_Must be Thunderkit, Lightningkit and Ambergaze, _he thought, looking at the two kits. He couldn't tell the kits apart though.

On the other side of the Nursery, rested two kits, one grey and the other brown and black, and another queen, who was black with grey patches. Darkkit guess that the kits were Stormkit and Clawkit and the queen was his mother, Wolfshade. Grinning, he trotted over, glad that he could finally see the hidden bumps in the moss which usually tripped him repeatedly.

"Wolfshade, Wolfshade!" Darkkit yowled, barely containing his excitement. "Guess what?" He trotted over to her paws and looked up at her. Her eyes were green. _Are my eyes green too? _

Wolfshade looked down at him, obviously able to see that he had opened his eyes, but she decided to let Darkkit announce his news. "What is it, dear?" she mewed.

"I opened my eyes!" he squeaked, running around in circles.

"Yay! Now you can play better!" Clawkit yowled, jumping on top of him as she'd done earlier and beginning to battering him with her paws.

"Easy there, Clawkit," Wolfshade mewed gently, lifting her off of her brother. "We don't want to hurt him. Why don't you and Stormkit take him outside to see the camp as long as you don't stray too far?" she suggested, setting her down.

Clawkit nodded quickly. "Ok! C'mon guys! It'll be fun!" she prompted, poking each brother with her large paws.

Stormkit and Darkkit both exchanged glances looked back at Clawkit, who was already making her way out of the Nursery. "Wait up!" Stormkit called; him and Darkkit running after the brown and black kit. "What if something happens? What if a fox gets into camp? I've heard foxes eat kits! What if a buzzard-"

Clawkit snorted. "Don't be a mouse-brain, Stormkit. We have a bunch of warriors to protect us. They won't let anything lay a claw on us kits!" she said confidently, pushing her way out of the entrance into the camp.

Stormkit still looked skeptical, but followed Clawkit nonetheless. Darkkit trailed behind, eagerly awaiting the outside.

When they got outside, Darkkit was astonished. He'd never imagined the camp to be so _big_. Dens were carved into the ravine walls, but Darkkit had no idea how they got there. The clan couldn't have _possibly_ dug the caves out of stone. He drew his attention away from the walls and looked out at the rocky, dusty ground that stretched out before him. Cats lounged in the shade of outcroppings and the ferns that sprouted from the cracks in the rock, while some sat by the huge pile of prey munching away at whatever they had pulled from the mound. Straight ahead, the ground began to slope up, and the farther Darkkit looked, the more grass he saw. That was obviously the exit of the camp.

"Well who is this?" Darkkit spun around as someone spoke behind him. He looked up and saw a large black and orange tom standing before him.

"M-me?" he squeaked, feeling himself shrink inside his pelt.

The tom let out a hearty laugh. "Of course! I'm Dragonsong, the deputy of SummerClan. What's your name?" he asked once more.

"Darkkit," he answered.

Dragonsong let out a purr. "Ah, you must be Wolfshade's third kit! I've heard a lot about you from your littermates," he explained, flicking his ears towards Stormkit and Clawkit.

Darkkit's littermates ran over without hesitation once they saw who Darkkit was talking to. "Hi, Dragonsong!" Clawkit chirped, jumping onto his back. Stormkit sat himself next to Darkkit and shuffled his paws, looking embarrassed that Clawkit was pestering Dragonsong.

"Hello there, Clawkit," Dragonsong mewed, twisting his head around to look at her. "I see you've finally brought Darkkit outside."

"Yep! He finally decided to open his eyes!" she chattered, jumping down to the other side of Darkkit. "Isn't he the best?"

Dragonsong smiled. "He sure is! He seems just like his father," he remarked with a nod of his head.

Clawkit's eyes widened and looked at Darkkit. "That's right! You haven't met Dad yet! He'll be so happy to see you!" she yelped, shoving Darkkit and Stormkit towards a den. "See you later Dragonsong!"

Darkkit frowned and looked over his shoulder at Dragonsong, who was watching them go. The deputy's shoulders were shaking with laughter as he saw Clawkit take over as leader. He had wanted to talk to the deputy a bit more and ask a few more questions, like, what was a deputy? And what did a deputy do? It seemed like an important role to play in the clan.

While he was thinking, he hadn't realized that he and his littermates had made their way to a large den in the wall of the ravine. Darkkit was overwhelmed by the different scents of so many different cats. He had no idea the clan was so large… and this was only one den.

"Woah," Darkkit gasped, looking around. The den was filled with nests, and some had cats sleeping in them.

"Impressive right?" Clawkit chuckled. "This is the warrior's den, and Dad is right over there." She pointed with her tail at a mound of brown and white fur lying in a nest on the far side of the den. "Let's go over to him!"

"Ok!" Darkkit chirped, running towards his father, unaware of the other warriors sleeping in the den.

"Wait, Darkkit! You can't just go running across the other warriors…." Stormkit's voice trailed off as he watched Darkkit.

Darkkit paid no attention to Stormkit's warning and continued running until he was tripped by something on the ground. He fell on his face and stood back up, shaking bits of dirt and moss from his fur, he looked back and saw he had tripped over someone's tail.

"Watch where you're going, runt!" a voice snarled.

Darkkit leapt back and yelped. Standing before him was a reddish-colored tom. What startled Darkkit the most were his front teeth, which stuck out of his mouth and made him look even meaner than if he didn't have them.

"…I'm sorry," Darkkit murmured, staring at his paws. "I didn't mean to step on you…" His pelt burned hot with shame.

The stranger snorted. "Well you shouldn't even be in the warrior's den anyways. Where is your mother?" he growled.

"She's in the Nursery!" Clawkit's voice startled Darkkit as his sister stepped in front of him to face the angry tom. "We're only here to visit Snowdrift!"

"Ah," he hissed. "Well, be more careful next time, or I'll make sure you're punished for disrupting the peace."

The two nodded and the red tom went back to his nest and curled up. Soon, his snoring echoed off the cave walls.

"Where's Stormkit?" Darkkit whispered into Clawkit's ear.

"He'll be here in a moment," she responded with a glance at the place where they started at. Darkkit looked over and saw his large brother clambering across the den, placing his paws carefully around every sleeping warrior.

"Let's hurry up and find him," Stormkit mumbled, whisking by them and heading for their dad once again. Clawkit and Darkkit both followed, and Darkkit felt himself trembling with excitement at the thought of meeting his father.

**A/N: Aaaaannnnnnnd boring filler chapter! Over 2,000 words! But hopefully things get more interesting as the chapters go on! I didn't really know how to end this chapter so our young protagonist will meet his father in the next one!**

**I'm thinking about doing a question of the day sort of thing at the end of every chapter. The questions could be about either what happened in the current chapter, what may happen in the next chapter, or it could just be a random question like 'what's your favorite video game?' or whatever.**

**So here's the first Question of the Day!**

**Do you think Darkkit will like his father? **

**You can explain why you chose that answer if you like, but you don't have to if you don't want to :D**


End file.
